Equine Divine
by Jjah-Jjah
Summary: ChibiUsa hasn't seen Helios for years, and she finds herself longing for his presence. Little does she know that certain colorful characters are going to make her dream come true! [HeliosChibiUsa] TwoShot. [COMPLETE!]
1. Part I: Earth

It is I, Jjah-Jjah! And I have no idea why I'm writing this. I don't even watch this anime anymore... Oh well. I'll just put it down as practice. This'll be my first gung-ho romance. So... That's it. Disclaimer!

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. I do own a nameless stuffed anteater. Go fig.

Hope you enjoy the story! From the laptop of an insomniac, here's the first installment of...

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Equine Divine

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I'm in love with a frikken horse...

You've got to admit it seems pretty lame, especially when you consider the differences in species, weight ratios and other important physical differences like that. However, that's certainly not the end of it! No sir! Of course not! You see, this isn't just any normal, run of the mill, eating grass, and nibbling fences horse that I'm in love with...

He's actually a Pegasus. You know, one of those snowy white imaginary creatures with wings, and, in his case, a golden horn sticking out of the top of his head. He can also turn into a human! Well, mostly... He keeps the horn... It's kind of cute...

Gah! Unhappy thoughts!

Ok. Let's not think about that anymore...

Yeah right. That's impossible. I'm obsessed. Now I know how my mother used to feel back when she drooled whenever Mamoru even casually entered a conversation. Of course, I don't drool... Yeah. But Lord! When ever I think about him, whenever I remember what he was like, even so long ago, I can't help myself! My face turns red, my breathing quickens, and I feel like I'm in a world of ultimate bliss. I am in a world of ultimate bliss... But it's not real...

I sighed. Life sucked at times. Still sighing like some horribly depressed angsty teenager (which I am), I wrenched myself out of bed and stumbled drunkenly onto my balcony. It was a nice balcony. It was covered a blue climbing flower that I didn't know the name of and it overlooked Crystal Tokyo. There was a fog coming up. When the sun finally rose, you wouldn't be able to see you hand in front of your face. With just how much accuracy I was able to predict this told you something about me... I hadn't slept through a whole night for roughly two years now. Insomnia was a disorder that resulted in two things: exhaustion and complete and utter boredom.

Yet the long tracts of time I remained wakeful also served as a time of amazing discovery. I had never before realized just how entertaining counting ceiling tiles could be! And there's also the whole counting all the individual hairs on your head thing, but I won't go into that.

I sat down on the railing of the balcony. It was made of stone and the night chill made it cold; it soaked through me. The city below shimmered through the developing fog. It was beautiful, but it was empty, at least to me. Someone once said that absence makes the heart grow fonder. I wouldn't mind introducing that someone to Sailor ChibiMoon and allowing said warrior to beat them down into a quivering pulp.

I always spent time like this wondering about myself. It seems selfish, I know, but there's something to be said about the way a person views themselves, and something else besides if what they have to say is never positive. I like to think back sometimes and remember what I was like back then. I smiled, I was cute, there was laughter in me that I don't think is there anymore. My pigtails were puffy. I smiled at that thought. They aren't anymore. They're still pink and in the same style, but they're longer now. My name is Small Lady, but I'm not small any longer. I'll admit, I'm still pretty short, but I'm certainly bigger than I used to be.

I used to be Chibi Usa. That was the girl that fell in love with Pegasus; the girl who received her first kiss from Helios. But I'm not her anymore, am I? Chibi Usa was a child; a wonderful, pure-hearted, dreaming loving, bighearted child. I am not a child anymore. I'm sixteen years old. I'll be seventeen next month. My mind, my heart, is not of that child anymore. I'm not the same.

And that scares me.

I'm not the same person that Helios cared about. Cared about, ha... He never said that he loved me. I've spent a good portion of my life mooning over someone who most probably doesn't even feel remotely the same way. (Yet another thing to add to the list of depressing things in my life.) Heck, even that one time he did kiss me it was just to save my life... Even if it was one hell of a kiss...

Oh crap! There I go again!

I've got to stop this! It can't go on! I can breathe, I can't move, I can't dream without thinking of him! I was a kid damn it! A kid! There is no possible way that he could have been in love with a kid! I nodded in agreement with myself with such force that I teetered on my perch and nearly fell to the courtyard far below and went splat. I could see the headlines now, "INSOMNIAC PRINCESS OF EARTH FALLS TO HER DEATH WHILE FANTASIZING ABOUT MAGICAL HORSE." Oh yes. That would be a popular issue. Quite wisely I got off the railing. It certainly wasn't the safest place to be with where my thoughts were going.

"My brain hurts." I said out loud. The sound seemed to ring and in spite of myself I froze, waiting for the last resonance of it to spend itself and silence to take over again.

I decided something then. My thoughts were becoming too morbid for my liking, so I would do something that I only did on what I considered "special occasions". With this in mind, I ran back into the confines of my room. Despite the darkness I didn't run into anything. I knew the way by heart. With long practiced silence I opened up my wardrobe and pulled out the closest dress. Incidentally, it was my favorite: a garment that mimicked my mother's old princess dress only pink instead of white. I'm a glutton for pink, I don't know why. Perhaps it just makes me feel feminine, like a lady. Or maybe it's just because my hair matches... Oh well. I pulled off my nightshirt and put on the dress. I had had my hair up in a bun so that it wouldn't tangle when I tossed and turned for the majority of the night. Now I took it down. It brushed my bare shoulders like a curtain and then fell to brush against the pale marble floor. I rushed over to my vanity mirror and hurriedly fixed it up into my regular style. I really had no reason to get dressed, but I accepted the fact that the hour or two of dozing earlier was all the sleep I was going to get tonight. I might as well get dressed for breakfast.

Finally, I finished. I opened the door and stepped out, shutting it softly behind me. The floor of the hall was smooth and cold beneath my bare feet. I took a few steps into the center of the passageway, looked right, looked left, and then held my breath and listened. Sweet complete silence; everyone was asleep. I grinned like a crazy weirdo, picked up my skirts, and ran.

There was no direction in particular to my mad dashes. There never was. I had begun first doing this when I was small reveling in the feeling of freedom I got sneaking out after my bedtime. The palace, my home, was a completely different place late at night. The halls were dark and eerie, silence was a living thing, ordinary objects seemed transformed, and moonlight streaming in through the windows cast dancing shadows that shone like opal in the oddest of places. The place that I lived in, that I knew by heart was transformed into a completely different world. I had never been caught during one of these trips, but I would not be surprised if someone knew of them. However if they did they had never said anything and for that I was grateful. The secrecy was an essential part of the fun, and I knew that if anyone ever told me they knew about it that I would never do it again.

There was an obvious exception, of course, Helios. When I was younger I used to pretend that Helios was running beside me, but then I would come back to myself and there would be the reality that he was not there... Imagination was such an overrated thing.

I had arrived at my destination. It was a small ground level balcony at the side of the palace that overlooked my father's rose garden. There were two chairs pulled up close the railing, probably by my parents, so I sat in one. Any sane person would be busy dreaming right about now, but I had given up on any hopes of sanity long ago. There wasn't any point. Even in my dreams my dreams never came true. You'd at least think that good for nothing winged donkey would take some time off his busy schedule to visit at least once... A visit? Heck, a smoke signal, sky writings, jungle drums! I wouldn't even mind a singing telegram, but noooo... Here I am becoming bitter. I didn't used to be bitter! It just proves how much I've changed, or more specifically just how much I've grown up. Funny how growing up and being a lady used to be my most beautiful dream, but now I'm afraid. I know that he cared just a little bit for the child. Now my dream fulfilled doesn't mean a thing! My dream may have come true now, but it means nothing if he doesn't care anymore!

My dream used to be to become a lady, like my beautiful mother. I remember that as we get older when out dreams come true we get newer, better ones. My newer, better dream is a no-brainer. I want to see Helios again. I want to be with him, I want to get to know him, I want to be able to love him... and I want him to love me too... But Lord knows it's just a dream.

And probably not beautiful enough of a one to attract his attention...

Letting out a depressed groan I slumped down in the chair... Whatever happened to the chipper ever happy me? (Shloop) Down the drain. What was that? Your life. That's it? Do I get another one? Sorry, kid. No can do... And now I'm talking to myself... Great.

I mean, what's so great about him anyway? He's only sweet, and kind, and absolutely gorgeous, and perfect, and he can fly, and this isn't helping. He's probably galloping about with the fairies in Elysion and hasn't thought about me once. Where was Elysion again? Oh yes, the center of the earth. Well, if this obsession gets too bad I can always grab a shovel and start digging. I can see myself now: covered in dirt and wearing a construction hat while manning a backhoe in the middle of the rose garden, family and friends looking on bewildered as I scream obscenities into the hole. I wouldn't put it past myself.

"And just what would you do once you got there?" I muttered to myself. What indeed. Heh. I could just poke a hole in the wall of the dream world, pop through, seek him out, and latch on. "Hidey ho, my love!" I would say. "Remember me? I'm that sweet kid whose dreams you used to live in! I'm not exactly sweet anymore, and I'm not a kid, but here I am! Let's go explore your lovely home!" I would nearly squeeze him to death with a clumsy bear hug and then I would lug him off somewhere and force him to turn into Pegasus and give me a ride. He would do so out of politeness, and I would be ecstatic thinking he was doing it because he loved me. He would probably throw his back out. I could see in my mind the image of panting, half-dead Pegasus lugging a black and white giggling cow with pink odangos on his back.

I narrowed my eyes I annoyance at myself. I spent waaay too much time being depressing. I need a hobby. What was the point of being so depressed over it? I couldn't let this ruin my life. Surely there were other people out there...

But then why did it seem like such a travesty to me that I could barely remember his face?

And why did I feel like I would trade anything to just so much as hear his voice?

I stared down at my hands in the darkness. Was this really love? If it was, why did it hurt so much?! It's as if a part of me is dying... This can't be right. It can't be...

A drop of clear liquid fell onto my open palm. I started and blinked in surprise. Several more drops fell down. I was crying. At first I felt even more depressed. Then I realized it was quite possibly the most constructive thing to do for the rest of the night.

So I did.

I cried until I couldn't anymore and that was when I realized that the sun was coming up... I was in serious shit. I had waited too long. The palace started to stir at dawn. If ever there was a time to get caught, this was it. I squeaked out my distress and like an epileptic rodent, leapt out of the chair and scurried madly back to my room wheezing as I went. The light shining through the drapes was a pale orange when I finally made it back. I was surprised I hadn't run into anyone, Sailor Mars especially considering she was always up around sunrise... For meditation, or something like that. However, I'd like to think that I was moving so fast that no mortal could have detected my presence... Yeah... I flung open the door, quietly of course, and rocketed into my room. I shut the door and then leaned back against it, sliding to the floor. Slowly I caught my breath. It was pure luck that I hadn't run into anyone. The adrenaline was still rushing through my veins, leaving an ache behind as it dissipated. Once my pulse returned to normal, I suddenly realized that I was actually tired. In fact, I felt like sleeping. It was something of a rare occurrence.

I felt like I was a hundred years old as I pulled myself up and staggered over to my bed. I couldn't even manage to put my head on the pillows. I simply fell back onto the white satin sheets, lopsidedly across the bed and closed my eyes. They burned briefly because I'd been awake for so long. There were no melancholy thoughts to keep me up; I had wept them all out. So I fell asleep only a few moments after I closed my eyes.

I dreamed of feathers...

It was such a strange dream. There was no background to it, no sound, no other object, no other living thing. I wasn't even in it. All there was were white feathers falling from heaven like snow...

One of the most annoying things to wake up to is the sound of someone pounding on your door like a psychopathic gorilla.

"Princess! Wake up! You're late for breakfast!"

I opened my eyes slowly and glared at the door. Ok, so it wasn't a gorilla, it was Sailor Jupiter... Not that I think she's like a gorilla or anything! It's just that when I first wake up, everyone and everything seems to take on a twisted and malevolent light... When I didn't answer, she continued to pound on the door.

"Come on! If you don't come out, I'll have to break down the door."

And she would! I had lost a lot of doors that way... Oh well, I was too groggy to care. I was pretty much conscious, in the figurative sense of the word. As Jupiter continued to threaten, I swept my gaze around the room and made a list of its contents in my head... What can I say? Yet another fun activity brought to you by the courtesy of insomnia.

'Chair, window, curtain.' I thought. 'Dresser, vase of flowers, vanity, Stallion Reve, balcony, window, curtain, wardrobe, dinky shelf.......'

My eyes snapped open and I sat up as abruptly as if I'd been attached to a string. I stared at what was sitting, as if it had always been there, on my vanity table and decided that I was hallucinating.

But just to be sure, I flung myself off the bed and landed on the floor with a thud. I scrambled over and without hesitation grabbed the familiar object. My hands didn't pass through. The Stallion Reve was cool and real beneath my fingertips. My heart stopped and then started. I felt giddy! I could hardly breathe!

"Alright! I'm counting to five! One, two, three, four..."

"Ack! Wait a minute Jupiter!" I yelled, panicked. I had to hide it! No one else could see! I ran about the room crazily for a minute or two. I was taking too much time! "Give me a minute! I'm naked!" I screeched in explanation... You try coming up with something on such short notice... Anyway. Finally, I yanked the door of the wardrobe open and placed the precious object on the floor. I ripped a few dresses off the hangars and covered it up as best I could. Hopefully no maids would come to clean my room today... I shut the wardrobe door and leapt over to the mirror o survey my appearance. Apparently I had not tossed or turned while I slept, for I was still in acceptable condition. I brushed a few wrinkles out of my dress with my hands and primed my hair slightly. Then I hurried to open the door.

Sailor Jupiter was leaning against the doorframe. She smiled. "Didn't sleep well last night?"

I nodded. "Same as always."

"You know, maybe you should try taking sleeping pills or something."

I shrugged. As we walked to the dining room I cast a lingering glance back over my shoulder. I could hardly wait for the meal to be over. I had to get back to my room and look again at what lay in my wardrobe. It seemed impossible. I had to be seeing things, but...

What did it mean?

Why now?

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Thank you for reading! Hope you like it! Stay tuned for Elysion. And please, please, R&R!

Tata, JJ


	2. Part II: Elysion

It is I, Jjah-Jjah! Hey, maybe now that I've finished this, more people will review. All hail the Small Lady and Helios pairing! Muahahaha! Reviews!

brae: Thank you. Glad you like my portrayal… Well… Here's the rest, finally…

crazyhanyoued: Thank you for reviewing! And yes! The end is finally here! Muahahaha!

Kerichi: Gee, thanks! (blushes) I dunno if the portrayal of Helios is going to be that radical. Anyhow, everything is from Chibi Usa's perspective, so we don't really kno what he's thinking, only what he says… So, in theory, he could be pretty messed up… I'm thinking I might write another story that delves more into his character, but not incredibly soon.

YamiClara: (Giggles back insanely…) Thank you for the review:D

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Disclaimer: Sailor Moon belongs to what's-her-face… And that's not me…

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Breakfast is a wonderful time of the day…

Ok, I'm a glutton. I'll admit it. In my defense, it's hereditary. I love foods of all kinds and I always enjoy trying something new. However, on this particular morning food was the absolute farthest thing from my mind.

"Are you sure you're not hungry Small Lady?"

"Are you sick?"

"Is the world coming to an end?"

I blinked at all the people around the table, exasperated. What was wrong with not being hungry? Granted yes, I normally had about three to four helpings at breakfast, but life is about change! I know. I read it on the back of a matchbox.

"I'm perfectly fine everyone!" I smiled and tried to look normal. Gah! The hardest possible thing in the world to do has to be trying to act normal when you feel like running into the sunset screaming like a giddy fool.

"As long as you're alright." My mother's voice always carried even though it wasn't particularly loud. It was as if the air itself were trying to cling to the fading reverberations of sound because they were so beautiful. I smiled and my mother and nodded.

Neo Queen Serenity. I have never understood how she transformed from silly Usagi to angelic perfection. I had always thought that the same royal air would come to me with age, but now as I stand on the threshold I think I've decided that it's something that I don't really want. I wonder sometimes if when Usagi changed into Serenity, if she didn't lose a part of herself. At least I'll always know that even if I remain always as angsty, and clumsy and imperfect as I am, I'll always be me. At least I have that.

The rest of the meal went on uneventfully. I stayed for a while, so as not to arouse any suspicion that I was up to something. Which I was very surprised I succeeded at, actually… Either everyone was preoccupied with something else or I'm a much better actress than I give myself credit for. Anyway, I excused myself at the first opportunity and soon as I got out of seeing distance, I rocketed to my room, slamming and locking the door behind me.

I stood there for quite a while, leaning against the intricately carved paneling, too scared to start moving to the closest where all my hopes were hidden. What if it wasn't there anymore? What if it had all been a hallucination from lack of sleep? What if it had been a side-affect of those pizza-mushroom-cheddar puff things I had eaten early last night? Crappity, crap, crap, crap.

One step.

Why now? Why now when I was so insecure with myself?

Two steps.

Against my will, I actually wished that I had become the beautiful, elegant, flawless, woman that I was not. I smacked myself in the head immediately afterwards…

Three steps.

How had it gotten into my room? Had he brought it here? Was it some kind of sadistic conspiracy concocted by my family and/or friends? Beamed in by aliens? Stolen from Elysion by packrats and cashed in my room by mere chance?

Several more steps that I'm too lazy to relate.

Holy frigging crap! I'm freaking out! I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die! The frikken thing is right inside my wardrobe! Or is it? … Oh, shit! It's going to be gone when I get there isn't it! Yup… That's the way life is: your hopes get up and then they're CRUSHED! They're crushed so bad…

My hand rested against the wardrobe door for a moment, and then I opened it. My clothes were wadded up at the bottom just as I left them. I reached down, my whole arm trembling, and pulled the cloth back.

And there it was. I picked it up with both hands and pulled it from its hiding place, not daring to take my eyes from it in case it decided to disappear. Rabid butterflies were having their sadistic way with my stomach and I felt a little bit light headed. The room spun for a moment as I sunk to the floor, my skirts billowing out around me like a mushroom. The Stallion Reve's base made a metallic sound as it connected with the marble floor. I took my hands away from the sides and almost immediately an almost tangible hush settled over the room, followed by a slight chill. All I could hear was my own breathing; all I could feel was my own heartbeat. I felt strangely hypersensitive; I was aware of the very atmosphere around me, yet I was unaware. My hands hovered over the sphere at the top of the Reve for a single moment. A slight not-glow had started, the kind that can only be seen behind the eyelids, emitting the tiniest bit of heat. Then my hands were drawn to the sphere as if by magnets and everything turned white.

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There was no sense of time.

I don't remember how long I lay there, my eyes closed, aware, but unwilling to admit it. I felt as if I were enveloped in a cloud, light as a feather.

Feathers.

Once again, the images of my dream floated up from the watery darkness. Behind my eyelids white spots appeared and as they slowly fell towards me they turned into feathers. They fell against my skin like velvet snow. I opened my eyes.

Not feathers. Petals. A strange vine, absolutely loaded with heavy-looking white blossoms threaded through with purple, loomed over me like some kind of protective canopy. I blinked up at it for a while, understandably confused, and then slowly stood. A sweet smelling breeze came up, making my skirts ripple as I surveyed my surroundings. I had been resting at the base of a lovely moss-covered goddess statue; the flowering vine was twisted around it so that it looked like some kind of exotic tree. She was smiling at me. The statue tree and I stood at the apex of a green rounded hill; apparently the highest point for some distance. A beautiful forest stretched out all around me, dotted with colors I could only guess were hundreds of flowers. The atmosphere, and I mean literally, sparkled.

I had never seen such a beautiful place in my life.

Not even Crystal Tokyo could hold a candle to this. I spun around and smiled like an idiot… Why was I here again?

Wait a minute… Breakfast, mad dash, Stallion Reve, twilight zone moment, transport to…Oz? Yep. That sounded about right. Now what?

"Follow the yellow brick road!" I didn't realize I'd said it aloud till it echoed back to me. Ok… Small Lady, it's time to get down from the high places and go find your sanity. Too bad I didn't have Diana with me. She would have made the perfect Toto. Alrighty then. Down the hill I go.

There wasn't any kind of path anywhere, so I simply picked a direction and started down. The grass was dewy, so I had to hold my dress up and pick my way carefully to keep it dry. As it was, I soon discovered that my silk shoes were no ruby slippers. They were soaked through in the little time it took for me to get down the hill. Once I got to the base, I found a conveniently placed large rock, which I sat on and pulled off my shoes. I didn't really feel like carrying them, and god knew I could stand to lose a pair after all those shoe-shopping excursions Sailor Venus had dragged me on, so I lined them up neatly on the rock and walked barefoot into the forest.

There's just something about walking barefoot through a forest. I'm not quite sure what it is… Maybe it's a feeling of being at home. Truthfully, I had never felt more at home anywhere than I felt in that forest. I walked for a while, I don't know how long, but I never did get tired. The trees surrounding me were thin, young, and very tall. They hadn't looked overly tall on top of the hill, but now that I was below them I felt like a rabbit among giants. (Ok, bad pun…) I could see the morning sun beginning to climb through the greenery far above. At some point, I became aware of a faint noise and being as I didn't have any appointments, I followed it.

The closer I came, the more unmistakable I realized the sound was. When the waterfall came into view, I wasn't really surprised, but I was in awe. It was beautiful. Heck, everything around here was beautiful. The water looked white like snow, as it cascaded down in a thick ribbon into deep pool below it. As I neared, I couldn't quite understand it. There was no water draining off the pool that I could see, yet despite all the water going into it, it didn't overflow. The pool itself was nearly perfectly round and it seethed with bubbles like soda pop. Was it hot? I kneeled down next to the pool, the spray of the waterfall dampening my face, and held a hand a few experimental inches above the water. When I didn't feel any heat, I dipped my fingers in and giggled. It felt so nice! Funny, but nice. It was a lovely cool temperature and the bubbles tickled.

Another strange thing about the pool was that despite the disturbance the bubbles made, I could see my reflection as perfectly as if I were looking in a mirror. It was the stereotypical unicorn's pool; strange and beautiful. At that moment, I could no longer deny where I was.

I had seen Elysion. At least I think so. When Helios was Pegasus he had often shown me his kingdom in my dreams, but Elysion had been in tatters then. It had been encased in the ice of Nehellenia's wrath. Besides, I had almost always seen it from an airborne perspective. Too bad I couldn't call back up those wings that Pegasus had given Usagi and me that one time. Then maybe I would have been able to recognize something.

But in any case, I was sure that I was somehow in the world of dreams. I peered at my reflection as I thought. Ok. I had evidently been sucked here through the Stallion Reve. So, whoever had put the thing in my room wanted me to come here… But it couldn't have been Helios, right? I mean, he would have probably been waiting for me instead of leaving me to wander around aimlessly. My parents could have done it, they certainly have the power, but I hadn't seen any indications that something was going on a breakfast this morning. Usually I can tell when they're up to something. There's no one else, is there? Maybe Puu, but I just can't see her as being the type to just dump me here. She would have probably visited me and talked to me about it first. I don't know anyone else who would be able to pull this off…

Owie. My head hurt. A part of me screamed that I should be careful, on guard, but another part of me just told me to savor the experience while it lasted. Hadn't I always wanted to come here? Funny, it was almost a kind of…dream…of mine… I shook my head hard, squeezing my eyes shut, setting my pigtails whipping like lethal missiles. I stared intently at my refection and noted what I saw.

Cone-shaped rabbit ears pointing skyward, complemented by long, thin streamers and curving bangs that framed a crescent moon. Gigantic blood-red eyes. A thin, yet lamentably short figure swathed in pink silk. I reached up and ran my fingers over the smooth surface of my crescent moon birthright and stared myself in the eyes with a seriousness that was somehow wrong.

I am looking waaaay too far into this.

Ok. In the dream world, alone in the woods, sitting by a waterfall, no idea what direction Helios might be in…

Time for a swim.

So, I twisted my pigtails around my head, to keep them from getting wet, in a manner that most likely would have made anyone that saw them burst into hysterical laughter before dying from a brain aneurysm because of the lack of oxygen. What can I say? Dealing with hair as long as mine sometimes forces one to become creative, and sometimes creativity just goes wrong… Anyway, then I looked around to make sure I wasn't being spied upon, and took off my dress, laying it on a nearby rock so it wouldn't get wet. Finally, I slipped into the water.

Brrrrrrrrroo ga-ha!

Is that a word? Probably not, but that was the first thing that sprung into my mind. The water was so fizzy! And cool! And fizzy! And cool and fizzy and fizzy and cool… In case you haven't figured it out by now, it was really nice. It kind of reminded me of one of those massaging shower-heads, but coming from every direction. I crossed one arm protectively over my chest, held onto the side of the pool with the other, and simply floated, closing my eyes and tilting my head skyward in complete bliss. I allowed my worries, cares, hopes, and fears to slip away.

I hadn't really planned on going underwater, that was the entire point of the ridiculous tying up of the hair, but I guess I wasn't thinking clearly or something. Maybe I was held prisoner under the hypnosis of the bubbles, I dunno. So, without any conscious thought, I held my breath, let go of the side, and slid beneath the water. I didn't move or fight the water's stirrings. The current worked my pigtails free; I felt one brush against my bare arm. My eyes were closed, so as far as I knew, I could have been only a few inches from the surface, or it could be feet. I didn't know. I didn't care. I opened my eyes and saw white.

White? Bubbles, the spray of the waterfall. They danced and swirled and seethed far above me, like feathers twirling in the wind. Feathers? Yes, they were feathers. Before my eyes the silvery little spheres lengthened and whitened and then the water just beyond my reach was thick with feathers.

I kicked my legs, adrenaline giving them a strength that surprised me. I reached upwards, hands outstretched. Only a little bit further.

My hands touched nothing. My head broke the surface, I dragged in a huge lungful of air, and the waterfall thundered down on my head. The feathers were gone. Shakily, I pulled myself out of the poll and lay there for a moment, catching my breath and waiting for my body to adjust from the weightless feeling that you get from being in the water. Eventually, I realized I was naked and pulled my dress back on, despite the fact that I was still wet. My hair had thankfully stayed in its proper style. (Hey, if the official moon hairstyle can stay in place through youma attack and apocalypse, what's a waterfall going to do?) Hopefully, the sun would dry out my clothes as I walked. And walk I did.

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It took a while, before I realized that since Elysion is at the center of the earth, it had no sun. There was this bright thing that seemed to serve the same purpose, but it wasn't really a sun. I could tell because I stared straight at it for fifteen whole minutes, blinking sparingly, and my eyes aren't ruined. And as for my clothes and hair drying? Heh, heh, heh… Yeah… That worked out just peachy keen.

I had been walking for about half an hour when the rain started. I call it rain, because I'm not sure what else to call it. It wasn't quite the same thing as rain as I'd known it before. Usually rain is just usually, you know, drops of water falling from the sky, pretty straightforward. Yet this rain was more of a mist. It wasn't a fog, because a fog hangs around, it's static. This mist moved like rain, from the sky to the ground, but the droplets were very fine, almost as if it wasn't really water at all. And it didn't make things look gloomy either. I took refuge under a large tree that looked at the base to be a whole bunch of small trees whose canopies blended together into one. It kind of looked like an umbrella, and it certainly acted like one. I sat on a protruding root, rested my chin on the heel of my hand and looked out over a world that was bright and beautiful. It was like looking at the world through a living veil. I wonder what it would be like to live here.

My musings were interrupted by a nearby trilling sound just to my right. I looked, and perched right near me was a strange little bird. I blinked, it blinked. How alike we were… Really, though. We actually were the same color. It was hot pink, looked something like a sparrow, and had long dark yellow crest on the top of its head that raised and lowered with its expressions. It cocked its head, looked at me appraisingly.

"Hello." I said, wanting to be polite just in case this was some magical talking dream-bird that I was speaking to. "Pleased to meet you. My name is Small Lady." The yellow crest rose vertically and it blinked at me. I guess that means, 'Hi, how are ya? Nice to meet you too.', in bird talk. Suddenly, the little guy chirruped and another little bird flew down from the top of the tree a few moments later. It perched right next to the other bird, chirruped back a greeting, and peered at me too. This one was a tad bit smaller than the other, and was black instead of pink. It didn't have a crest, but it did have several neon green and blue vertical stripes going down its head and back. Funny. I always thought that vertical stripes were supposed to be slimming, but this little dude was rather chubby. And cute, I might add. I smiled at him and bowed slightly. He clucked and blinked at me for a bit, till both of them spontaneously flew over and perched on me. The pink one went for my shoulder and the black one landed on my knee.

Alright. I had the approval of the natives. Now its time to get some answers. "Excuse me, but have either of you seen…a Pegasus? I need to find him." It seemed to me that Pegasus might hang out with birds… Hey, it's possible…

The two of them looked at one another, looked at me, and then took off in tandem again. I thought at first that they had decided that I smelled bad or something and were ditching me, but as they reached the edge of the canopy they stopped and hovered, waiting for me to follow. Not being one to disappoint, I did.

Considering how colorful they were, they were darn easy to follow, even in the mist. They led me to a huge mass of orange canna flowers. At least I recognized a little bit of the plant life. There, they stopped, and perched on the big glossy leaves chattering excitedly to one another. Ok… Either these birds didn't actually understand me at all and were now laughing at my expense, or Helios had turned into a flower patch. Well crap. I started to go back to the tree and get out of the rain, but then I noticed something caught in the flowers. Something white…

I looked closer. It was still there. Slowly, afraid it would disappear; I picked up the long white feather and held it to my breast. It was so soft; it felt so familiar. I was holding a piece of him in my hands. The realization stopped me cold, stopped me breathing. My legs almost collapsed beneath me. So close. So very, very close. My hand trembled, and I looked at the birds with what must've been my heart in my eyes, because without a sound they took off and led me on.

It was only a few moments. It had to have only been a few moments. They led me around a few trees, and what might have been a wall, but I couldn't tell because it was so covered with climbing yellow flowers. Then, as if I had stepped through a portal, before me a lovely flowering garden and what could only be a sprawling temple appeared. My avian entourage let out a few tweets of farewell and disappeared. I stood there, wide-eyed, barefoot, soaking wet, and clutching a feather as if it were my very soul. I probably looked a horrible mess, but I didn't give a damn. I felt like a string was tied to my thudding heart and I was being pulled down a predetermined path into the garden. There were too many different kinds of flowers to mention or notice. I only had one thing in mind. Then, out of the mist, the form of an intricately carved white gazebo emerged.

And there, standing in the center, looking skyward with a solemn expression on his beautiful face, was the man of my dreams.

"Helios."

After I said his name, I saw his eyes widen. He turned and looked straight at me. Our eyes met for what seemed like an eternity. Then, he blinked, and blinked again. He rubbed his lovely amber eyes with one hand and then looked at me again, the astonishment on his face growing with every second.

"Maiden?"

He said it so softly, I barely heard him. I smiled sadly, I was just about ready to cry, and nodded. For a moment there was disbelief. Then he made a little sound, I'm not sure exactly what it was, but it broke my heart. He quickly stepped out of the gazebo, into the rain with me. We stood only mere feet apart. He had aged a bit since I had seen him last. Most noticeably, he was a bit taller. His silvery hair rippled a bit in the wind as if it was water, and his golden horn glinted in the light. I could've just stared at him for hours… I could've, but I didn't.

"Long time, no see, huh?" I smiled.

"Yes… It's been…quite a while…"

I took a step forward, another step forward, and another. I fingered the feather in my hands as if it were a magic talisman. He must have noticed, because he looked down at my hands and his eyes widened fractionally. To my surprise, I found myself standing in front of him, looking up into his eyes.

"I missed you…" There, I said it. The cards were on the table. It was make or break time.

He said nothing. He simply stared down at me with a stunned look on his face.

That did it… I couldn't stop the tears. I ducked my head and looked down at my toes before he could see. "Do you know my dreams, Helios?" I whispered. "For all these years I've waited to see you when I close my eyes. I haven't. I…I really missed you… Can't you please just say any—."

Before I could finish my self-righteous, teary tirade, I felt warm hands cup both my cheeks and tilt my head upwards. Before I knew it, his lips were on my own and my dreams were coming true.

Yowzers.

What a kiss! I tingled all over and my head spun with the sweetness of it all. We drew together as if we were being bound and I wrapped my arms around him. Last time I had embraced him, I had had to wrap my arms around his waist. Now I reached his chest… Huzzah for small advantages! Then came the point where intelligent thought completely dissolved. The only thing running through my head was how good he smelled, a combination of rain, sandalwood incense, and a distinctive sweet horsy smell. I was in heaven.

And all too soon it was over.

Our lips parted and I opened my eyes to stare up into golden orbs of barely masked pain. "I'm sorry." He said. He tried to pull away, but I held onto him. "I've wanted to do that for over a thousand years, but… You must understand… I always thought…"

"Thought what?" I prompted.

His bangs covered his eyes. "I'd thought that you'd forgotten me…"

"What!" How the hell could he have thought that!

"Most I visit forget me eventually… They grow, and their dreams change, and they forget all about me. There's no reason to believe that something as strange as a winged horse is anything but fantasy. I didn't think that you would be any different. I'm sorry, please forgive me." A warm raindrop fell on my cheek. "I never looked in on your dreams, because I thought they'd be too painful. The thought of you dreaming of another was…too much to bear…"

My wonderful Helios was crying. I reached up and wiped his tears away. He looked at me, startled, as if he had not expected me to touch him. "It's alright, but you should have known better…" I smiled. "I couldn't forget you like the others because I love you."

His smile was slow and warmed me like the sunrise. I felt as if I were a willing prisoner inside that stunning glow.

"Small Lady, Chibi Usa, Usagi, my Maiden…" He trailed off, and drew me close, his head lowering towards mine, and just before we kissed, he whispered against my lips.

"I love you…"

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Well, yeah… At some point, Helios eventually noticed that I was soaking wet, so he ushered me inside his temple and proceeded to pamper me. He found me a dry robe to wear while so my dress could be cleaned and dried, and I had let my hair down so that it would dry faster. Now, we sat together on some sort of comfy couch thing, drinking this spiffy hot cider-tea drink and just talked. It was nice.

"By the way, how did you get here?"

I blinked. "Don't you know?"

"No. It was quite the surprise, though a pleasant one, I might add."

I blushed instantly, and then recounted the tale of how I found the Stallion Reve and what happened after. "I wonder who put it there…" I mused aloud. Helios shrugged and smiled thoughtfully.

"I don't know, but I'm certainly glad they did." He leaned in for another kiss, and I obliged him.

So, here I am, wearing nothing but a borrowed robe, sitting on a couch kissing a unicorn boy, I have no idea exactly how I got here, and my parents and friends have no idea where I am… Who cares?

I'm happy…

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The End…

Kind of…

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Meanwhile, elsewhere in Elysion…

"I told you it would work! I told you, I told you, I told you!"

"Ok, ok, you were right. Don't rub it in…"

"Are you sure that's that kid? I mean, she's hot."

"I am a total genius!"

"Of course it's her, kids do grow up you know… Besides, he wouldn't have recognized her if she hadn't been the one, but he did recognize her, so she has to be the one!"

"…"

"…"

"Never mind…"

"Yeah. Anyway, he was just so lonely! It would have been cruel not to help!"

"You can say that again. Besides, watching him mope around was just so depressing…"

"I mean, think about it… We've probably just done the world a great favor. Without Helios, there would be no one to take care of the people of earth's beautiful dreams, and then all sorts of horrible things might happen!"

"That was a good job of slipping it into her room, by the way."

"We aim to please! You have no idea how hard it was to slip in there without those sailor senshi noticing!"

"Alright! What do we do now?"

"I dunno. We could go spy on them."

"That's evil."

"So? We can do evil."

"Well, I guess you're right. If we get caught, we can always say we were chaperoning. It'll get us in good with the royals."

"Amazon Trio away!"

And it was thus, that Fisheye, Tiger's-eye, and Hawk's-eye concocted and carried off their dastardly scheme…

The End. (Again.)

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Oh my God… Did I write all that fluff? It was fluff, wasn't it? Dang… I never thought I'd be able to do it… Well, hopefully it doesn't suck too bad. At least it's finally finished! R&R. Tata, JJ.


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